Mental Health Act 20266

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Powers of review board

28. (1) A review board shall hold hearings of the review board for the purposes of hearing and determining a review by it under this Act or an application for a transfer to the Central Mental Hospital under section 35 and may for those purposes receive submissions and such evidence as it thinks fit.

(2) Without prejudice to the generality of subsection (1), a review board may receive submissions and evidence in relation to matters, including the attendance of witnesses and access to medical or other records, in advance of a hearing of a matter referred to in subsection (1) and make decisions in relation to those matters in advance of the hearing concerned.

(3) A review board may, for the purposes referred to in subsection (1)—

(a) direct in writing any person whose evidence is required by the review board to attend before the review board on a date and at a time and place specified in the direction to give evidence and to produce any document or thing in his or her possession or power specified in the direction,

(b) direct any person in attendance before the review board to give evidence to the review board or produce any document or thing in his or her possession or power specified in the direction,

(c) direct in writing any person to send to the review board by a specified date any document or thing in his or her possession or power specified in the direction, and

(d) give any other directions for the purpose of the review board hearing concerned that appear to the review board to be reasonable and just in relation to the functions of the review board including to require that the evidence to be given by any person should be given on oath or affirmation and to administer an oath or affirmation for that purpose.

(4) The reasonable expenses of witnesses directed to attend before a review board under subsection (3)(a) shall be paid by the Commission out of moneys at the disposal of the Commission.

(5) A person who—

(a) having been directed under subsection (3)(a) to attend before a review board, having had tendered to him or her any sum in respect of the expenses of his or her attendance which a witness summoned to attend before the High Court would be entitled to have tendered to him or her, without just cause or excuse fails to comply with the direction,

(b) being in attendance before a review board pursuant to a direction under paragraph (a) of subsection (3), refuses to give evidence on oath or affirmation on being required by the review board to do so or refuses to answer any question to which the review board may legally require an answer or refuses to produce any document or thing in his or her possession or power legally required by the review board to be produced by the person,

(c) fails or refuses to send to the review board any document or thing legally required by the review board under paragraph (c) of subsection (3) to be sent to it by the person or without just cause or excuse fails to comply with a direction under paragraph (b), (c) or (d) of that subsection, or

(d) does any other thing in relation to the proceedings before the review board which, if done in relation to proceedings before a court by a witness in the court, would be contempt of that court,

shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on summary conviction to a class A fine or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 6 months, or to both.

(6) The procedure of a review board in relation to a review heard by it under this Act shall, subject to the provisions of this Act, be such as shall be determined by the review board and the review board shall, without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing, make provision in relation to procedures for—

(a) notifying—

(i) the person, the subject of the review,

(ii) the legal representative assigned to the person the subject of the review under section 30 (1)(c) or, where the person, the subject of the review has engaged his or her own legal representative at his or her own expense, that person, and

(iii) the responsible consultant psychiatrist,

of the time and date for the review hearing set under section 30 (1)(b) by the Commission,

(b) the attendance of the responsible consultant psychiatrist at the hearing of the review board,

(c) where a legal representative is assigned under section 30 (1)(c), or engaged by the person the subject of the review, the attendance of the legal representative at the hearing of the review board,

(d) giving the person, the subject of the review, or his or her legal representative a copy of any report furnished to the review board under section 30 and an indication in writing of the nature and source of any information relating to the matter which has come to the notice of the review board in the course of the review,

(e) providing such supports as are reasonably necessary to enable the person, the subject of the review, to be present at the hearing and to present his or her case to the review board in person or through a legal representative, including the making of directions to the registered acute mental health centre concerned and to any other person requested by the person, the subject of the review, to facilitate same,

(f) informing the person the subject of the review or his or her legal representative of his or her entitlement to not attend a hearing of the review board under this section if the person does not wish to so attend,

(g) enabling written statements to be admissible as evidence by the review board with the consent of the person the subject of the review or his or her legal representative,

(h) enabling any signature appearing on a document produced before the review board to be taken, in the absence of evidence to the contrary, to be that of the person whose signature it purports to be,

(i) the examination by or on behalf of the review board and by or on behalf of the person the subject of the review (on oath or affirmation or otherwise as it may determine) of witnesses called before the hearing by the review board or by or on behalf of the person the subject of the review,

(j) the determination by a witness as to whether the evidence he or she gives to the review board should be given on oath or affirmation,

(k) the administration by the review board of the oath or affirmation to witnesses before the review board, and

(l) the recording of a sufficient record of a hearing of the review board.

(7) A witness whose evidence has been, is being or is to be given before the review board in a hearing under this Act shall be entitled to the same privileges and immunities as a witness in a court.

(8) A legal representative appearing before the review board in a hearing under this Act shall be entitled to the same privileges and immunities as a legal representative in a court.

(9) The review board shall exclude during a hearing of the review board all persons except persons directly concerned in the matter before the review board and such other persons (if any) as the review board may in its discretion permit to remain.

(10) The following shall be absolutely privileged:

(a) documents of the review board and documents of its members connected with the review board or its functions, wherever published;

(b) reports of the review board, wherever published;

(c) statements made in any form at hearings of the review board by its members and such statements wherever published subsequently.

(11) A person the subject of a review shall be entitled to attend any hearing concerning his or her involuntary admission but shall not be required to attend if he or she or his or her legal representative states that the person does not wish to so attend.

(12) Subject to subsection (13), the Commission shall publish on its website on a quarterly basis and in such form and manner as it considers appropriate, anonymised versions of every decision of a review board under section 31 .

(13) Where the Commission is of the view that, notwithstanding subsection (12), due to the existence of exceptional circumstances, the publication of a case under subsection (12) would nonetheless identify the parties in relation to whom the decision relates, it may make a determination that the decision should not be published by the Commission.